Battle
Alfonso crossed the mountain range that defended the Almohad camp, sneaking through the Despeñaperros Pass, being led by a local shepherd that knew the area. The Christian coalition caught the Moorish army at camp by surprise.
According to legend, the Caliph had his tent surrounded with a bodyguard of slave-warriors who were chained together as a defense. The Navarrese force led by their king Sancho VII broke through this bodyguard. The Caliph escaped, but the Moors were routed, leaving some 100,000 casualties on the battlefield. The victorious Christians seized several prizes of war: the tapestry covering the entrance to Al Nasir's tent was sent to the Abbey of Santa María la Real de Las Huelgas near Burgos where it remains on display to date, and Miramamolín's tent and standard were delivered to Pope Innocent III.
Christian losses were far fewer, only about 2,000 men (though not as few as legend had it). The losses were particularly heavy among the Orders. Those killed included Pedro Gómez de Acevedo (bannerman of the Order of Calatrava), Alfonso Fernández de Valladares (comendator of the Order of Santiago), Pedro Arias (master of the Order of Santiago, died of wounds on 3 August) and Gomes Ramires (Portuguese master of the Knights Templar). Ruy Díaz (master of the Order of Calatrava) was so grievously wounded that he had to resign his command.
The Caliph Muhammad al-Nasir himself died in Marrakech shortly after the battle, where he had fled after the defeat.
After the battle, the kingdom of Navarre adopted a new coat of arms in memorial of Sancho's achievement. The new coat of arms featured a network of golden chains on a red field with an emerald. Today, it can be seen within the coat of arms of Spain.
Read more about this topic: Battle Of Las Navas De Tolosa
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I was always a virgin,
old and pitted.”
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“Much have I seen and known—cities of men
And manners, climates, councils, governments,
Myself not least, but honored of them all—
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“A great work by an Englishman is like a great battle won by England. It is an unfading bay tree.”
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